Letters

It was a pleasure to see the reasoned letter by Dave Collins and the Viewpoint column by Chick Keller on the issues of roundabouts and narrowing Trinity Drive to two lanes.
Unfortunately, none of the commentary has addressed the most significant two issues of two-lane vs. four-lane thoroughfares, namely: Without double lanes, how am I going to pass the overcautious, doddering old (%&@$#) driver ahead of me and how am I going to be able to get out of the way of the reckless young (%&@$#) fool racing up behind me?

I applaud the council for its efforts to make Los Alamos a better place to live, however I am not convinced that the proposed roundabouts on Trinity Drive is a positive step in that direction.
There has been a lot of discussion on the roundabouts. If I understand correctly, one of the reasons for this proposed change is to beautify the area.
I am not sure why we are attempting to beautify the streets with landscaped roundabouts while at the same time we choose to leave the eye sore buildings on both sides of Trinity standing.
If you want beauty ... we need to look at surrounding buildings not the asphalt.

There is a growing national trend of de-valuing the teaching profession that has finally, and unfortunately reared its ugly head in Los Alamos.
Having read the story about the April 21 school board meeting in the April 22 Los Alamos Monitor, I can no longer remain silent.
I am writing as a parent, special education teacher and former instructional assistant. It is simply unconscionable to assume that because a position with the school district has been vacated that there is an “opportunity” to replace teachers and librarians with instructional assistants.

On behalf of the family of George Anderson, we would like to sincerely thank the community of Los Alamos, Bethlehem Lutheran Church and Kathleen Hoverson for their outpouring of love and support after the sudden loss of Joann Anderson on April 12.
Nearly 170 people attended her memorial service, and we were so touched by the large amounts of cards, meals and words of support.
We know Joann is smiling down on the community she called ‘home’ for so many years.
Peace and blessings to you all!

I appreciate the Los Alamos Monitor’s coverage of the recent school board meeting and the reflection of community support for our school libraries. However, in fairness there are items I need to correct.
Kurt and I announced our retirement in March. I expected my part-time library position to be eliminated. I am grateful that the school board gave me this year to formalize procedures, work with vendors, and lighten (but not eliminate) the cataloging load.
It was Piñon librarian Maxine Schmidt who more recently announced her retirement.
Suddenly the “shared librarian” information appeared on the district website as “White Rock Library News!”

Is it possible to have a reasonable, fact-based discussion regarding options for renovating Trinity Drive? I’d like to believe we can, but after reading the viewpoints you publish, I wonder.
In Friday’s paper, John Pawlak said that on the SIDRA homepage (software being used by the consultant hired by the county) “the word roundabout appears 69 times,” presumably to prove a blatant bias in favor of the dreaded roundabouts.
Well, I just looked on the web page, www.sidrasolutions.com and counted (using the browser “find” function) nine occurrences of “roundabout.”

I don’t know what the big deal is about roundabouts. If they work in so many other places in the world why won’t they work here? Are we special or different?
I personally hate stop lights. I hate to sit waiting stupidly at a light when no one else is around.
I would rather drive slow than fast just to have to stop and wait.
That’s my opinion. I think some people are stuck in the past.

NCRTD in namesake was formed to provide seamless transportation to north central NM. This mobility did not exist previously and is a successful effort between city, county and tribal entities.
It requires dedication and foresight by all parties. No organization of this scope could flourish without growing pains; NCRTD has had its share. We cannot lose sight of the people served who have a safe and cost effect method of traveling to critical medical appointments, work or school.

I think the proposal to reduce Trinity Drive to one lane each way is silly.
I hope the Los Alamos County Council has the good sense to discard it. We know from the recent battle over Diamond Drive that county staff loves roundabouts.
Consultants get rich telling customers what they want to hear. Simulation studies can be loaded like dice to produce desired outcomes.
Voila! Roundabouts will provide smooth, increased traffic flow with a single lane and pedestrian crosswalks.

At the Los Alamos Transportation Board meeting at Fuller Lodge concerning Trinity Drive, I asked the MIG consultants a simple question: was there any example of a four-lane highway being narrowed down, and having its traffic flow improved?
Their answer was that there was one (only one?), La Jolla Boulevard in Bird Rock, Calif., in San Diego.
Joel Williams has done the research regarding this street. To quote the information he located, “drivers often use the interior streets to avoid the traffic and roundabouts on La Jolla Boulevard.